Bolt Stop Pin Nightmare!

This is a discussion on Bolt Stop Pin Nightmare! within the Ruger 10/22 Rimfire forums, part of the Rifle & Shotgun Forum category; Wow! I was going to do my first 10/22 deep clean and read everywhere how to disassemble the rifle. All was going well until I ...

Wow! I was going to do my first 10/22 deep clean and read everywhere how to disassemble the rifle. All was going well until I got to the Bolt Stop Pin. This thing felt like it was soldered into the receiver. I pushed, pushed, pushed, and pushed as instructed but this thing wasn't moving a budge. In the process I scratch up the receiver and finally decide to use a screwdriver and rubber hammer. It finally works but in the process of beating the hell out of the pin it gets even more scratched and the hole for the pin is a tad bit warped since it's made of a cheap aluminum. What a disappointment that was. Now I have an ugly receiver with a hole that looks weird. I hope the thing can be put back together again. Ruger doesn't sell replacement receivers. I think they need to rethink the design of the bolt stop pin. It's almost as bad as the Mark III assembly/disassembly design; well, not that bad. I bought a black paint pin to cover the nasty marks. Should a pin that's fit (soldered) that tight to the frame have a frame made of aluminum? Anyway, just venting.

The design's work for 46 years now so I'm thinking it's NOt the design. What were you pushing with initially that it scratched the receiver? Mentioning the screwdriver for the pin removal I'm thinking...use the right tool for the job. . This design has had guns with thousands upon thousands upon thousands of rounds fired through them with the bolt hitting that cross pin and not shown any deforming of the hole so I'm thinking either WAY too much force was used and it wasn't directed squarely to the pin. With a screw driver that wouldn't surprise me though. Sounds more like operator error than design failure.
Just to clarify, you did try removing it from the opposite direction after the first seemed too difficult right?
The reason replacement receivers aren't an available item is because they're the serial number part. Isn't the area of the pin below the level of the stock and not seen anyways?

Point taken, but the pin should be able to ease out without any problems since no

Here's Ruger's instructions:

Drift out the bolt stop pin, at the rear of the receiver.

It doesn't say hammer out the pin with a rubber mallet. I've followed other Ruger instructions in the past and have been able to do just fine but these instructions need to be clearer for the the novice. We aren't all gunsmiths or have backgrounds in mechanical or machining work. Recommend tools to do the job.

Drift the pin out... Tools: drift punch. best to get the right tools before you need them not after the fact. Get a GOOD set of screwdrivers, one that wouldn't be used as a punch. Also get a decent punch set. Both allow choosing the correct size for the task at hand.
If the pin in question didn't move at first nor after a firm hit, a small bit of lubricant and a waiting time. Still thinking the right tool would've made it go smoother.

In any firearm I've owned that was 'new out of the factory', many of the parts were always a bit on the tight side. It's a good idea to disassemble the firearm the first time before firing it just to clean all the grease and heavy oil off the parts that they often use right off the assembly line. Parts loosen with time and repetitive disassembly, and a 'lil patience.

Wow, none of the 10 22's I have ever seen have had a problem like this, and I have seen a few (I own 4 myself). I do replace the steel pin with a buffer, and they are harder to remove than the steel pin, but still usually don't require tools. If anything I use the wooden stick end of my cleaning cotton swabs. 3 of the 4 here are well used before they got to me, and one was new. Even others I know have never had that hard a time.

Only thing that immediately comes to mind is that you shouldn't have the bolt locked open when you try to remove the pin?

Damn, I didn't even know punch tools existed. Thanks for the info. I'll probably just paint over the nasty crap and call it a day. I figure that it was a good experience to disassemble. In the future I'll do a better job. IMO the worse thing you can do is nothing for fear of failure.

I had a 10/22 that had a pin that did not want to come out. I got a replacement gun (for a unrelated reason) and when I got the new gun back the pin will just fall out now. I guess it is just luck of the draw. I still to this day can not get the upper off my 22/45 even after giving it a beating of a lifetime.

Damn, I didn't even know punch tools existed. Thanks for the info. I'll probably just paint over the nasty crap and call it a day. I figure that it was a good experience to disassemble. In the future I'll do a better job. IMO the worse thing you can do is nothing for fear of failure.

I've got over 40 years of machinist/mechanic experience and have drifted out my share of pins. There are companies that make combination drift pin sets in the combination of steel and brass. I know that on Ebay you can usually get a set in a round plastic holder for about $10-15. Give it a look and see what you can find. As stated before, " The right tool for the job". It sure makes life a lot easier. Hope this helps................